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May 31, 2013

As I mentioned at the beginning of the year, one of the things I wanted to do was design a room for Baden. He's been in a room with frames that say "Rex" for a couple of years now and he's never picked anything himself. At first he was stuck on a fire station, but as his project got pushed off (due to the bathroom and nursery needs) his opinion changed.

He decided he wanted a tree fort room. We used this surf shack bed from Pottery Barn for some inspiration.

We also used this room's color scheme for inspiration. Baden has been saying blue and orange are his favorite and I just love this color scheme too.

So, the building portion of the room is done (thanks to my dad who whipped this up amazingly fast), but I have a lot of painting left and then decorating. We're now debating whether it should be a tree fort room or a surf shack, because we all think it looks like a surf shack. Plus, Baden thinks the surf shack idea is really cool.

May 30, 2013

When I used to think of tie dye, I had this vision of a huge steaming pot on the stove with tongs and lots of shirts, etc. From what I had seen, it was a complicated process. However, once I tried the Tulip tie dye kit a couple of years ago, I was really excited to know that it's actually a super simple process now. I think this is the first thing I ever tie dyed (which was 2 years ago). Since then I've dyed a few things.

Well tie dye is big again - especially with the ombre rage. In fact, Tulip just launched a web site all about tie dying - including a sweet giveaway for a iPad mini, with a tie dye skin, and supplies for your own tie dye party.

The other day the boys and I decided to have our own tie dye party. We got out our kits and went to work.

The kit comes with rubber bands, gloves, and this bottle (which already has the color in it). You just fill it to the line with water and you're in business. See? I told you it was crazy easy.

May 29, 2013

A few weeks ago after a rough day with the kids I feel upon a blog that I haven't stopped thinking about since. It's called the Orange Rhino.

The blog author began the blog as a challenge to herself to not yell at her kids for 365 days. And guess what? She did it.

I know it's easy to see a blog and make assumptions. She does so many fun activities with her kids, so she must be a perfect mom. She adores her children and makes things for them, so she really has her act together. The truth is, I have a long way to go to become the mom I want to be. I loose my temper much more than I should. And, I beat myself up over it when I do. That's why I really connected with her and her blog.

This lady was so real about her situation and so committed to improving that I found it really impactful. I also thought I'd share her blog with you guys in case some of you feel like I do.

Here are a couple of places so start, or a few posts of hers that I think you'd love to read. Just click on the title to go to the post.

In that post I really thought about trying to notice what triggers my temper loss. For me it's when I'm tired and hungry, when my kids are tired and hungry, when I have a day too packed with things I have to do, when the house is not unclean or really unorganized, and when my kids have big tantrums about things that are totally illogical. Now, most of those are things I can change, though some aren't. I'm excited to slow things down this summer and work on all of this.

Another great post was what she learned by NOT yelling for a year.

It was good to reaffirm that raising my voice doesn't even work. It's not affective. She had a lot of great realizations that were interesting to read.

I think so much of our happiness in life comes down to our own personal self control. I've tried to master my self control with eating the past four months and it has felt great. I love feeling in control of my actions and the benefits of it are amazing. I want to feel just as in control when my kids freak out over nothing.

I read this quote a long time ago and loved it and HERE's a little printable of it I found if you need a reminder like me.

May 28, 2013

So it finally happened. Baden turned four. If I weren't having a baby soon I might bawl my head off about it. He's been such a fun and easy boy that it makes it so hard to see him grow up. I want him to be my little 3-year-old sidekick forever.

So I thought I'd show you a few things I made for his birthday. First off, I let him make a number shirt for his birthday, just like the one I let Rex make HERE.

It's an easy way to let your child do it all by himself. I only smoothed out the paint a little when he was done so there weren't any bumps. He loved painting it.

I also sewed up some shorts to match. They are just like the ones I made from my husband's old t-shirt HERE. (He happens to have them hiked up kind of high here, but I made them to cover his knees.)

May 27, 2013

I have one more week of Mommy School ideas for you. This last week of plans is all about science. I think our science experiments from last year were my boys favorite part of Mommy School. So, I've rounded up some old and some new, for a week full of fun. We'll probably tackle an experiment a day, but I posted more options than that here so you can find ones that use supplies you have at home. It's always good to have options.

You'll also notice, I've added two buttons to the sidebar a little ways down. One is for mommy school and contains every Mommy School post we've ever done. The other says Mommy Summer School Plans. That's the easy way to access all the summer weekly plans I've created the last 7 weeks. Hopefully that'll make it easy for you to use and find the ideas during your summer.

1) We've never tried this one, but it looks really fun. It's a way to make your own bouncy balls. Find detailed instructions HERE at Mom to 2 Posh Lil Divas.

2) Mini Volcanoes. The boys loved this one last summer, so we'll throw it in again. You can find it in THIS POST.

May 26, 2013

When I look at this picture it makes me feel so happy. We live in such a beautiful place and seeing my boys play and enjoy childhood is awesome. I've said it a few times before, but I love to think of my job as a mother being much like that of a tour guide. This is your world, boys. It's amazing.

It's been a fun week. I was crazy enough to start one more big project before Elsa comes. My parents are my enablers :) We've started Baden's room. I'll probably give you a quick sneak peak before I break for the summer this week.

Even though it won't be his room, this guy has been SO excited about it. He was grandpa's helper yesterday.

May 25, 2013

A few months ago I was contacted by Baby Beau and Belle (a company with gorgeous baby clothing) to see if I'd like to review something for the new baby. I got on their site and fell in love with the beautiful, high quality items. I really liked the vintage look of their clothing lines.

In the original picture I thought the fabric looked more formal. It's actually a knit fabric, but that has it's advantages as well. It's nice to have a pretty dress that is actually comfortable as well. We have a family wedding in June that this would be great for.

May 24, 2013

I had a lot of grand ideas when it came to sewing for this baby. There are a billion ideas in my head, but this time around I'm already a mom of two. That means that my grand ideas have morphed into a few 5 minutes projects - things I can squeeze into small increments of time. Today I have another super simple sewing project. This one can be made in about 5 minutes. No joke.

You know I love finding ways to upcycle old clothing and this project does that well. It utilizes the existing hem of a t-shirt, so the sewing is really minimal. I've always loved these little knotted beanies you see on newborns.

May 23, 2013

Today I have a super simple sewing project - the 15 minute diaper clutch. I'm not super fast with sewing, but this baby takes almost no time at all. It's also a pretty easy project - even if you're a beginner. While I'm calling it a diaper clutch, it could easily be used as a regular clutch as well.

I knew I wanted this case to be fairly large. It needs to fit my wipes and I like it hold 3 larger sized diapers as well. I laid out my fabrics together with the patterns on the outside as show.

May 22, 2013

One of my very favorite sites to peek at is Very Jane. They offer some amazing daily deals and all of the items have a homemade-etsy feel. I've mentioned Very Jane once before and I'm still in love. While I usually hate getting emails from sites, I love being on their email list because their items are awesome and so are their prices.

Well, today I have a fun treat for one of you. The fun people at Very Jane let me hand pick some baby items for Elsa and one of you will receive all the same ones. Here's a peek at the baby basket.

Here's a better look at the package. Have you seen the barefoot sandals that have become popular? That's what these are and I can't wait to try them on her teeny feet.

May 21, 2013

Remember how my mom sews really well and even has a few awesome patterns for sale? Today I thought I'd show you the baby carrier cover she made for me. AND she offered to give away a few baby carrier cover patterns to 3 lucky winners as well.

May 19, 2013

Baden is now riding a two-wheeler! Seeing his little body peddling his little bike just makes me crazy happy.

My husband and I each took one of our boys out on a date Friday night. My very favorite restaurant is the Roof in Salt Lake, but it's pretty darn pricey so we go maybe once a year. Well, Rex has heard me talk this place up for a long time and he's begged and begged to go. We happened to have a gift card from someone, which wouldn't have been enough to cover my husband and I eating there, but it was perfect for Rex and I since he's the little kid's price. So, he won and we went on a fancy date.

On the way there he asked me non-stop questions about the place. "Is it tile or carpet? What do the servers dress like? Can I eat dessert first? How big is it? How many tables of dessert are there?"

It's a fancy buffet and I did let him hit the dessert table first. He was in heaven....and so was I. It was so much fun.

May 17, 2013

As you've probably seen in blogland, Engineer Blueprints from Staples have become a big thing. Why? Because you can print a huge 2'x3' poster (black and white only) for only $3. Mostly, it seems that people use them for family photos but there are a LOT of ways to make use of them. Here are a few uses you might not have thought of.

1) School Elections. My niece is running for vice president at her middle school. Why not go big with a few posters? I figured she could use markers to fill in the stars or banner if she wanted to spice it up with a little color.

2) Toy room/bedroom art. These Lego posters have been a hit in our playroom. Read the details about them HERE.

3) Events. I was asked to do a booth at a Women's Conference this year about dating your spouse. My mom and sister came and helped. For the booth decor we kept it simple and did a poster of each couple. Booth decor price? $9. Nice.

May 16, 2013

I think this is the last nursery project and then next week I'll show you the whole finished look. It's actually all done and I can't wait to show you!

For the closet, I liked the idea of removing the doors and making the closet itself look cute. The walls inside it were already white, but I wanted to add something fun to them. I was inspired by Destiny's walls that I mentioned HERE on a Five Finds Friday. However, I wanted to use clouds and make it look like wallpaper.

I used my Silhouette to cut out about 9 feet of vinyl clouds. I squeezed as many as I could onto the page.

To apply them I came up with an easy system. I got out a piece of painter's tape and applied is to the wall, making sure it was level. Then I made stars to indicate where I wanted the clouds to go in that row and dots where the clouds go on the next row (since they are staggered). I used a small piece of tape to measure the distance between each line. So after I completed a row I would move the short tape, move the long tape, and make sure it was level. Then all I had to do was quickly apply that row.

It was a lot faster to do than I thought it would be and it was a billion times faster than stenciling.

May 15, 2013

Back when I was in college I had a blank poster I taped on my wall. I added the words, "Things that make Cheri happy" and every day I would add something to it along with a little picture I'd draw. I wish I still had that poster. It made me smile just to look at it and read through the things.

I think gratitude is so important to our happiness and I don't feel like I've been keeping tack of the things I'm grateful for as much lately. So, I thought I'd make a little list here to get me started and then start a list by my bed again that I can write on at night.

So here are 5 things that make me really happy.

1) Green Turn Left Arrows. What's not to love?

2) How when one of my kids is being a total punk, the other seems to notice and becomes so kind and helpful to me. The boys were fighting today and Rex was driving me crazy. Baden came over and said, "I'm going to try really hard not to be mean, Mom." Thank you. You can have all the inheritance, son. :)

3) Popsicles. I'm sensing an addiction for the summer. We are going to be making a LOT of popsicles. I just can't get enough of them. Plus, it's nice that you can make them pretty healthy, too.